Pharmacists to check stocks of Neurofen Plus

The Irish Pharmacy Regulator is calling on all pharmacists to check all packs of ‘Nurofen Plus’ Tablets in their pharmacies after five packets in the UK and Northern Ireland were found to contain an anti-psychotic drug.

The makers of Nurofen Plus, Reckitt Benckiser has also withdrawn distribution of Nurofen Plus in Ireland and the UK, saying sabotage is suspected in some packets.

The affected packets are the 32-pack size which are not authorised for sale in Ireland.

The Irish Medicines Board is advising patients to check their packs of Nurofen Plus to ensure they contain Nurofen Plus blister strips and a Nurofen Plus patient information leaflet.

The makers of Nurofen Plus said that in the unlikely event that a patient finds a rogue blister strip or leaflet, they should immediately take it to their pharmacist who will report it to the Irish Medicines Board.

In the UK and Northern Ireland four packs were found to contain Seroquel XL 50mg and one contained the Pfizer product Neurotin 100mg capsules, which is an epilepsy drug.

While there have been no serious health consquences so far, Reckitt Benckiser said sabotage of the product is suspected and that they are working with the UK police on a formal investigation into the issue.